Melbourne: Indian veteran Rohan Bopanna, with his partner Matt Ebden, entered the men’s doubles semifinal of the Australian on Wednesday and is set to become the oldest first-time World No. 1 at the age of 43 when the latest ATP rankings update will be released on Monday after the conclusion of the grand slam tournament.
The second-seed Indo-Aussie pair defeated the sixth-seed Argentine duo Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) at the Margret Court Arena.
The quarterfinal win propels Bopanna ahead of the current World No. 1, USA’s Austin Krajicek, in the ATP Rankings. Krajicek, alongside his Croatian partner Ivan Dodig, were bowed out in the second round.
Bopanna and Ebden will next take on the Czech-Chinese pair of Tomas Machac and Zhizhen Zhang in the semifinals.
Last year the Indian ace became the oldest man to qualify for a grand slam final in the Open era, when he and Ebden lost the US Open final. In addition to their run at the US Open, the pair reached the final at four ATP Masters tournaments and appeared at the ATP Finals in Turin.
Bopanna additionally boasts the distinction of being the oldest player to clinch a men’s doubles title at a Masters event. This achievement was accomplished last year at the age of 43 when he, along with Ebden, emerged victorious at Indian Wells.
–IANS